4 Dead As Hostage Standoff Ends At California Veterans Home

A standoff at a veterans home in Yountville, California, ended Friday night with the deaths of three female employees and the gunman who took them hostage, the California Highway Patrol said.

The unidentified gunman, a military veteran armed with a high-powered rifle, stormed the Veterans Home of California-Yountville in Napa County midmorning Friday during a farewell party for an employee. He exchanged gunfire with a Napa County Sheriff's deputy, then took three hostages into a room, where he stayed throughout the day. The others in the building fled.

Hostage negotiators were never able to contact the gunman as law enforcement officer and a SWAT team circled the veterans home.

Law enforcement officers finally entered the building about 6 p.m. local time and found the four bodies, Chris Childs, assistant captain of the California Highway Patrol, said at a news conference late Friday.

Childs thanked the deputy who confronted the gunman and prevented him from “going out and finding other victims.” The deputy was not injured.

Officers found the gunman’s car nearby, and a police dog indicated there may have been an explosive inside. “We found a cellphone, not a bomb,” Childs said.

He offered no other details about the shooting, including what kind of gun the shooter used, the gunman’s identity or the identity of the three workers. He did not know then the gunman and the hostages died.